Engendering the Peace Process in Africa Activity Report 2008
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Engendering the Peace Process in Africa 2008 Report of Activities Regional Office for Africa International Secretariat Liaison Office Immeuble du Pied du Phare des 8, Rue du Vieux-Billard 777 United Nations Plaza Mamelles, Appt 1 et 2, 1er Etage P.O. Box 5037 New York 10017-3521 P.O. Box 45077 Fann CH-1211 Geneva 11 New York Dakar, Senegal Switzerland USA Tel: +221 33 869 8106 Tel: +41 22 328 80 50 Tel: +1 212 687-1369 Fax: +221 33 860 20 47 Fax: +41 22 328 80 52 Fax: +1 212 661-4188 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY _________________________________________________________ 3 Challenges ____________________________________________________________________ 3 Opportunities __________________________________________________________________ 4 INTRODUCTION_______________________________________________________________ 5 I. EMPOWERMENT ____________________________________________________________ 6 Programmatic area 1: PEACE PROMOTION ________________________________________________6 Programmatic area 2: POST CONFLICT RECONSTRUCTION ___________________________________14 II. ADVOCACY________________________________________________________________ 24 Programmatic Area 1: Transforming policies into practice for gender parity and mainstreaming ____24 III. PANAFRICAN CENTRE FOR GENDER, PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT (PAC)_______________ 34 Background _______________________________________________________________________34 Summary of Activities _______________________________________________________________34 IV. INSTITUTIONAL BUILDING___________________________________________________ 38 1. Partnership and Fundraising ________________________________________________________38 2. Fundraising _____________________________________________________________________43 3. Research and Documentation __________________________________________________ 52 4. Information and Communication ________________________________________________ 53 5. Coordination _______________________________________________________________ 56 6. Executive Board ____________________________________________________________ 59 7. Monitoring and Evaluation ____________________________________________________ 59 V. CHALLENGES, LESSONS LEARNT AND WAY FORWARD _____________________________ 62 Challenges ________________________________________________________________________62 Lessons learned ____________________________________________________________________62 Way forward ______________________________________________________________________63 VI. PARTNERS _______________________________________________________________ 64 ANNEXES ___________________________________________________________________ 65 APPENDIX No.1 ____________________________________________________________________65 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This Annual report outlines the progress made towards achieving the goal as stated in the strategic Action Plan 2008-2012: Engendering the peace process for the attainment of human security and durable peace in Africa. FAS strategy is twofold – empowerment and advocacy – and each activity has been carried out to ensure that all programmes succeed in the attainment of the ultimate goal. To do so, FAS places special emphasis in investing in women and girls because its 12 years of experience show that their empowerment benefits whole communities. In 7 conflict and post-conflict African countries, and three regions, FAS projects advance the empowerment of African women to assume a leadership role in peace building. It also works in the entire continent to promote women’s effective participation and gender mainstreaming into policies and programmes relating to peace, security and development. FAS is consolidating its work in the Great Lakes by supporting gender machineries, governments and civil society to develop and implement the National Action Plans on UN SCR 1325. During the last two years, the work of the organization has been focused on Mano River particularly in Liberia for the preparation of the International Colloquium and the elaboration of the national Action Plan. This year FAS focussed mostly on Sudan and the crisis affecting women and children in the country. FAS has been able to respond to the call made by our sisters of Darfur to make a change on the road to peace in Sudan. Working side by side with communities to create lasting solutions that respect local culture and knowledge, FAS continues to make a substantial contribution to the implementation of the regional and international instruments that promote gender equality and empower women through building peace with and for women. FAS also joined forces with the GIMAC network to monitor and evaluate the implementation of the SDGEA by the African Union member states. Challenges One of FAS’ major challenges was to fight the increasing violence against women, bridging the gap between African women leaders and grassroots women and effectively mobilizing women from all sectors of society around a common agenda. Another challenge was a lack of sustainable financing for the implementation of projects and programmes deeply rooted in the priorities of FAS, its partners and allies. The level of engagement, commitment and solidarity amongst women in conflict areas also constituted a major challenge for the organization within the peace process. Nevertheless FAS persevered and managed to make significant progress in the countries it focussed on: Sudan, Liberia and the Great Lakes Region (DRC, Rwanda and Burundi). 3 Opportunities The different platforms (e.g. the Forums) that have been created and sustained for advocacy and encouraging the need to have one voice as the women fight for their place at the negotiating table. The use of instruments such as the African Union’s Solemn Declaration on Gender Equality in Africa, the Protocol on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa and the United Nations resolutions 1325 and more recently 1820 to fight for their rights. Partnerships and networks created are also a major opportunity for FAS to develop and carry on its work and commitments. We value our sustained relationship with our partner networks and the engagement of the African Women leaders in supporting women in crisis, without whom our work would have been incomplete and we hope their support and commitment will continue in the coming years. Finally, we would like to thank our old and new donors for their constant support 1. Bineta Diop Executive Director 1 The list of donors is attached in the annex. 4 INTRODUCTION This report is prepared as a narrative of Femmes Africa Solidarité's (FAS) activities from January to December 2008. It provides an overview of the activities undertaken by FAS this year in furthering the objectives of its five-year programme on engendering peace processes in Africa. It describes the background, objectives and outcomes of national, sub-regional, regional, continental, international and institutional-building activities. The report concludes by presenting a brief overview of FAS’ future direction in each programme area. FAS works in three phases: peace promotion, post conflict reconstruction and transforming policies into practice for gender parity and mainstreaming. The strategies used to carry out these activities are Women Empowerment and Advocacy. « ... At the moment there is a network in Africa called Femmes Africa Solidarité that is helping women. It worked in Burundi for conflict resolution. It has worked in the DRC and continues to do a lot more. It is working currently with women that I met, at the Commission on the Status of Women in New York recently. Women have reached out together; to members of different communities, different political parties and would not allow themselves to be divided by the violent conflicts happening in their countries. ” H.E. Mrs Mary Robinson , Former President of Ireland and chairperson of the Council of Women Leaders , in an interview on BBC's political news programme, HARD talk, on the role of working women worldwide. March 11, 2008 5 I. EMPOWERMENT Programmatic area 1: PEACE PROMOTION A) The Horn of Africa - SUDAN: Engendering the Peace Process in Darfur 1. Background Between the 2 nd - 5 th September 2007, Ms. Bineta Diop FAS Executive Director, together with a group of seven prominent women, led by Mrs. Mary Robinson, President of Realizing Rights, former Irish President and High Commissioner of the Office of the High Commission for Human Rights, and with the support of Oxfam, visited women, who were victims of rape and gender-based violence in Darfur in refugee camps and internally displaced people camps in Chad. The goal of the fact-finding and solidarity mission was to collect first-hand testimonies of the situation in Chad and in Sudan, as well as of the suffering and impact the conflict has had on the population, particularly on women and children. After the mission, the eight women engaged in a strong advocacy campaign, which included direct dialogue with world leaders around the world and addressing regional and international organizations, such as the United Nations Security Council. Following requests made during the field visit by several women’s organizations and authorities in Chad and Sudan, FAS developed a project called ‘Engendering the Peace Process in Darfur.’ All the activities of this project are supported by DFID and Norway. 2. Project Goal Since its inception in 1996, the organization has worked to promote the leading role of women in